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The War for Montenegro
The War for Montenegro was a minor European war that erupted in February of 1914. It began when Tsar Peter I of Serbia inherited the throne of Montenegro, and annexed it into his domain on February 4th. This threatened Austrian hegemony in the Balkans, who issued an ultimatum to Serbia to withdraw from Montenegro or else. Three days later, after receiving no reply, the Austro-Hungarian Empire declared war. Early Stages (February 7-10th) The Italians declared war against Serbia on the same day, and sent the 2nd Army and the 49th Infantry to reinforce the border with Austria-Hungary and Serbia. The Serbians took advantage of a hole within the Austrian lines, sending the 1st, 2nd, and 4th Infantry to Bosnia. The 1st advanced up to coast, while the 2nd and 4th advanced onto Sarajevo, which was garrisoned by the Austrian 2nd Army. The 1st Serbian Cavalry began outflanking maneuvers, and made it's way through the Austrian trenches. Both sides held fire for a period of time, while more men began arriving at the front. Many started to believe it was a phony war, as no fighting had begun although there were clear enough lines drawn. Middle Stages (February 11th-21st) In the early morning hours of February the 11th, the Bulgarians declared war on Serbia. However, still no attacks or battles happened until the 15th of February. At 2:40 AM, the 1st Austrian Artillery Army opened fire on Belgrade, and razed the city from it's massive bombardment. However, Tsar Peter and his entourage had not been in the city at the time, and remained fine. After the bombardment was over, and the 1st Serbian Cavalry had heard of the city's destruction, they attacked the 49th Italian Infantry from behind, and managed to wipe out the division in the Battle of Cer. Late into the night of the 15th, the 2nd and 4th Serbian Infantry attacked the Austrian 2nd Army stationed in Sarajevo, in the Battle of Sarajevo. This continued until the midday of the 16th with heavy urban street fighting, which resulted in large charges by the Serbian troops, which was costly on both sides, but the Austrians managed to emerge victorious, albeit taking abnormally high casualties for their numerical superiority. On the 18th of February, Greece declared war on Bulgaria, and mobilized their army, sending troops heading towards the Bulgarian city of Plovdiv, leaving the majority of their forces behind to protect their newly built trench system on the Bulgarian-Greco border. In the late afternoon of February 19th, the Bulgarian 1st Artillery, 3rd and 4th Infantry marched to the city of Nis, and engaged the 7th and 8th Serbian Infantry, along with the 1st Serbian Volunteers. The battle stretched until the 21st of February, when after massive amounts of streetfighting, the 4th Bulgarian remained as the sole division left in the city, with only 1,000 men remaining within it's ranks. The pyrrhic victory of this battle allowed Bulgaria to occupy the city of Nis, while also having lost a large number of forces in the Battle of Nis. The Greek army entered Plovdiv on the 21st, and took it with little to no resistance, due to the bulk of the Bulgarian army being stationed in Nis and Sofia. The Greek army then stayed put for the rest of the war. Ending Stages (February 22nd-28th) The Austro-Hungarian government began looking for a way to sue for peace, when on the 22nd of February, the Russian Empire joined the war on the side of Serbia. The 2nd,4th, and 5th Russian Cavalry, supported by the 5th, 6th,11th Infantry Corps, and the 5th Infantry Division moved swiftly, and encircled the city of Krakau in Galicia. Krakau contained the Austrian units of the 1st Cavalry Corps, 6th Infantry Division, and 3rd Artillery Division. This was done simultaneously with another Russian movement to encircle the city of Lemberg, also in Galicia. This second action was done by the Russian 1st, and 3rd Cavalry, the 4th Infantry Division, and the temporarily created 1st Russian Army, made up of the 4th,7th,8th,9th, and 10th Infantry Corps. Krakau stayed quiet, while the Russian Army assaulted the city of Lemberg and it's Austrian defenders, the Austrian 1st Army and the 7th Infantry Division. The fighting was brutal, as the Austrians were caught by surprise and were completely encircled. The Austrian forces were completely exposed, and lost many troops, before surrendering to the Russian forces. With Lemberg captured and Krakau at risk of falling, the Austrians quickly redeployed the 5th Army, 16th, 21st, and 22nd Infantry Divisions to force march to Krakau, due to the trains being down. The Russians swiftly won the Battle of Lemberg. However, the Austro-Hungarian government was in peace talks with Serbia and Russia. Austria accepted Serbian control of Montenegro, and had to give shipments of coal to the Serbians. The Serbians, on the otherhand, were forced to demilitarize Montenegro, and ship food shipments to Austria. These terms were negotiated in the city of Berlin, with the German Empire mediating the dispute. The Treaty of Berlin ended the war, with all other gains being restored to status quo ante bellum. The Krakau pocket was allowed to walk free, along with the surrendered troops and the Hungarian Field Marshal Svetozar Boroevic, who commanded the Austrian troops at Lemberg and who was captured. Category:Wars